Initial Telephone Screening Inter view 117

any relevant questions or comments from the candidate. For exam-

ple, if he asks about the next step in the interview process and tells
you that he’ll be on vacation the following week, you could record
‘‘not available for interview week of .’’
Going back to Figure 5-1, the center quadrant would contain
positions that have some technical requirements, but that also re-
quire a moderate level of interpersonal skills. The absence of either
would, in most situations, eliminate the candidate from consider-
ation. Positions in this quadrant would likely include HR benefits
administrator, bank loan officer, realtor, office manager, account-
ing manager, as well as some product sales personnel.
Let’s look at the accounting manager in more detail, shown as
(2) in Figure 5-1. In this particular organization, there are some
technical aspects to the job of accounting manager without which
it would not be productive to pursue an interview. These would
include technical/special skills such as:

• Bachelor’s degree in accounting

• Skilled in the use of Excel, Access, and Word
• Experience in preparing and analyzing financial statements
• P&L background
• Experience with ADP Enterprise or PeopleSoft Payroll
• Financial and accounting report-writing skills
• Previous supervisory experience of a staff of at least six em-
ployees

Since some of these requirements (e.g., B.S. in accounting or

payroll package experience) would be found on the résumé, they
would not be incorporated into the telephone screening interview.
Likewise, you may decide not to include any technical or special
skills on which you would be willing to train the person. The re-
maining technical and special skills, then, would be used on the
telephone screening interview.
In order for a person to be successful in the position in any

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118 High-Impact Interview Questions

organization there are also a number of interpersonal or soft skills

that are required. For the accounting manager position in this or-
ganization, there are four critical soft skills, without which the
company would not be interested in pursuing a face-to-face inter-
view. These include:

1. Experience and comfort with interacting effectively with top

management
2. Ability to prioritize in order to meet deadlines
3. Written communication skills
4. Ethics/values/integrity

Putting this information into a telephone screening interview

format, one might come up with something similar to the example
for the accounting manager, as shown in Figure 5-3.
Going back to Figure 5-1, in the upper left quadrant one would
find the more highly technical positions that require a relatively
low level of interpersonal skills to be successful. One would proba-
bly find positions such as chemist, CAD operator, electrical engi-
neer, or environmental technician in this quadrant. This is not to
say that having good interpersonal skills might not be a hiring ad-
vantage for any of these positions (all else being equal). It simply
means that one can be successful in these kinds of positions with-
out being the belle of the ball.
Let’s take a look at what a telephone screening interview for-
mat might look like for an environmental technician, shown as (3)
in Figure 5-1. Unless the candidate possesses technical skills and/
or knowledge such as the following, he would not be successful in
that position in this particular organization:

• B.S. in biology, chemistry, toxicology, environmental sci-

ence, or related field
• Experience with the state’s regulatory requirements for risk
assessment

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124 High-Impact Interview Questions

When conducting a telephone interview, regardless of the

basic, essential job knowledge/skills you are screening for on the
form, you would take notes relative to the potential candidate’s
answers and then check off the appropriate rating box, or rate the
candidate using another method. After the telephone screening in-
terview, you would recommend whether to pursue a face-to-face
interview with the candidate, that is, whether the candidate pos-
sesses the basic job requirements to warrant further consideration.
Throughout this chapter, the assumption has been made that
the telephone screening interview is conducted one-on-one. There
are organizations that have taken other approaches. The most com-
mon alternate approach is to have a second person listen in on or
participate in the telephone screening interview. This person
would also rate the candidate. The two interviewers would then
compare notes and make a joint recommendation on whether to
pursue a candidate. Organizations that have used this approach
tend to report that the cost of having two people conducting the
telephone screening interview is outweighed by the minimization
of rater error.
Before we move off the first of the five guidelines to conducting
a successful telephone screening interview, here is a warning on
basic job requirements. Sometimes it is tempting to establish high
requirements to attract the best candidates for the position. Be
careful when establishing the requirements to do so in a nondis-
criminatory manner. If you are uncertain as to the legality or appro-
priateness of a specific requirement, contact your legal department.

2. Keeping the Interview Short

A telephone screening interview is an opportunity to make sure
that the potential candidate meets the basic needs and require-
ments for the position. As such, it should not be a full-blown inter-
view. Generally, a telephone screening interview should be kept
short and concise—typically no more than thirty minutes. Remem-
ber that your only purpose in conducting a telephone screening

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Initial Telephone Screening Inter view 125

interview is to determine whether the potential candidate meets

the basic requirements, without which it would not be of value to
do a face-to-face interview.

3. Avoiding an In-Depth Discussion of the Job

Requirements
At no point during the telephone screening interview should you
discuss the specific responsibilities or required competencies of
the position with the potential candidate. This information should
be withheld until after you have gathered all of the data you want
or need on the candidate, which would place this kind of disclosure
toward the end of the first face-to-face interview. If information
about the position is provided to the candidate too early, it is possi-
ble that she could answer even CBBI questions in a manner that
would enable her to appear to be a stronger fit for the position than
she actually is.

4. Conducting a Legal Interview

The telephone screening interview is part of the entire interview
process; therefore, it must be legally conducted. Your documenta-
tion must be of the same appropriate nature as a face-to-face inter-
view. Bottom line: Don’t do or say anything that would be illegal
in a face-to-face interview because the same rules apply. It is im-
portant to remember that when any telephone screening interview
form is used that it is an interview document and that it is treated
as such. Specifically, all of the notes on the document must be job-
related. If you are uncertain as to any aspect of your interviewing
process or forms, meet with your legal department to review your
concerns.

5. Using the Proper Equipment

Avoid conducting the telephone screening interview over a cell
phone. While this may seem like common sense to you, it’s not to

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